Mama Beech

We knew December would sneak up behind us and ambush us with a Christmas schedule and wavering timetables! But on our last November day we built shelters. It feels like being immersed in a fairytale woods sometimes as the children decide between sticks and bricks to create a den! There is no straw available but the willow whips are flexible enough to create a whole different kind of den too. Moving the bricks unearths a lot of slugs, much to the delight of those prepared to map the silver trail that gives away where the creature has been... Some seem to like their house of sticks akin to AFTER the big bad wolf has been, as a giant nest that promise is "comfy" Other's have bigger plans... Sometimes Forest School is a time for letting everyone do pretty much what they want.  To organise themselves, to cooperate, to explore and experiment, to share, to enjoy, to problem solve, to story tell, to discover, to persevere, to achieve, and to go...

Rain is sometimes THE best thing!

The first frost of the year has given us an excuse to bring out a new toy! A microscope that connects to a mobile phone.  The children are fascinated by the way the world looks today, The grass is sage green, the air mists as they talk, the air is sharp, and everything is dusted in some form of 'glitter'.  The children investigate the feel of the frost, the places where it is thick enough to be called ice, how easy it is to melt it, and the shape of the thaw when the sun hits the ground. Then we have a closer look. See ice crystals warm into water droplets, and the edge of leaves framed in white.  This amazes the children and starts discussions from defrosting the freezer to the last time it snowed! They want to know when it will snow again, how clean is snow, are there different kinds of snow like there are different kinds of ice????? The questions come thick and fast and their interest leads to investigation, to touching, tasting, ...

  It's Mushroom season again! I love it! Stumbling across all kinds of shapes and colours hidden in the shadows! The children are always fascinated by them also, and we have so much space here there are lots to find.    We hunted them down under Birch Trees, we gentle moved long grass to see what was hiding, we carefully rolled logs to find tiny caps, and we found a Fly Agaric - the one no one ever thinks is real!! As long as you stick to the Forest School rule of  No Pick No Lick it will make you sick! You can safely investigate all kinds of toadstools and the bug life that lives around them. The children always amaze us with what they already know, with what they remember from books and stories, experiences with their families, and links they make with prior knowledge an the experiences in front of them.  Children enjoy being outside. Humans are a part of nature, something we try to forget too often, and outside children's ever expanding thi...

Well how did that happen?  I'm not sure I will get used to the naming of the terms 1 - 6 instead of 1 - 3 and measuring in Half Terms,  but the time scale is the same, September has gone, October is dying and November looms! Blink and it will be Christmas! With outdoor learning the passing of time is everything. The season's are rolling on.  For a change this week instead of taking indoor learning outside, outdoor learning came inside, and Year 1, who are about to embark on a topic all about Amazing Animals, had an 'indoor Forest School session'.  Now to all the Forest School practioners out there this must sound crazy. We are outside in hail and snow and horizontal rain, winds will make life difficult and the cold can turn you blue, but we're outside! Keep moving and wear thr right clothes and all will be fine... EXCEPT... in electric storms or high wind. So in case the weather catches me unaware I have a box of indoor activities I can differentiate q...

At the end of the 6/7/8 sessions of Forest School a class does, we celebrate the finish or our F.Sch.Experience with a campfire and toasting marshmallows.  During the weeks before we have learned to observe a 'Basecamp Rule' that ensures the children are aware of the space where the campfire will be lit. Even if there is no firepit at basecamp we respect the area it will be (with younger classes the placing of a tyre in the same spot helps) and walk around it carefully. The children who have never done Forest School before have heard rumour of Hot Chocolate and Marshmallows from siblings and friends, and they constantly whisper about it from day one! We make it clear that a campfire is a dangerous thing, the potential for harm is discussed briefly each week, and the understanding that we have to trust the children to listen well and NOT venture into the basecamp space is reiterated at every session. Quickly the class will police each other, reminding peers to a...

Mama Beech is gaining her colourful coat for the Autumn months, and the floor is a gallery of colour and texture.  The children are amazed at the colours they can find. AND the life cycle of a leaf. We found a skeleton leaf today and the children couldn't believe how delicate           or pretty it was. The outdoor learning aspect of our glorious grounds is beginning to emerge as classes venture out to collect 'signs of Autumn'. The return of the 'Nature Table' to classrooms, or at least to a communal area is something schools need to think about.  We assume children see nature and experience it all the time, via a garden or urban park or near their more rural home. The reality is that many children arrive to school by car, or bus, and hardly step foot in the great outdoors. Lot's see a football pitch, or swings, or a bike trail at the weekend, but not all, and these activities don...

The purpose of Forest School is to engage in Nature. It doesn't necessarily mean having a task or a plan, we follow the children's interests and build on those. Often if you explain that the outdoor area would benefit from a Bug House, or how useful a Bird Box or two could be, the children are eager to help. However, in order to really enjoy nature you need to immerse yourself in it, get to grips with bark and boughs, enjoy the breeze on your face, learn to respect the outdoors and find what it is about you as an individual loves... For Year 3 this most definitely climbing trees! The higher the better It does cause a minor heart flutter at times, but like anything in life there are parameters to be met to keep you as safe as possible.  Our basic tree climbing rules are: Tell an adult if you are going to climb so they can watch  Look up and plan a route look down and know at each stage how you intend to get back down before you climb, wrap your hand around your ...